Delhi University gets its first e-waste drop box

New Delhi, August (IANS): Intending to sensitise youth about safe disposal of e-waste such as old or unusable mobile phones, handheld computers, laptops and computer peripherals, Delhi University's first e-waste drop box was installed in Miranda House Monday.

The e-waste drop box has been placed by the e-waste management dataserv APAC.

"India is a growing contributor to the e-waste generated across the globe, and if this waste is not handled in an environmentally sound manner, it can cause major problems.

"Young people, particularly college students are active users of e-products. It is crucial to encourage them to responsibly dispose-off e-waste that is generated," said Amit Sardana, managing director, dataserv APAC.

India has 900 million users of mobile phones, so irresponsible disposal of such devices through illegal operators or junk dealers can cause serious environmental damage and lead to health hazards over time, he said.

"We plan to soon replicate this initiative across other colleges in the DU campus as well as other campuses.The e-waste in this box will be collected and disposed-off in line with the e-waste management and handling rules 2011 by dataserv APAC," said Sardana.